For $750 Bucks an Hour, You’d Expect This Expert to Spell Cardiomegaly Correctly

I came across an expert witness report in another fentanyl lawsuit. This is a defense expert, and he’s offering up the usual defenses of “It wasn’t fentanyl, she was obese!” and “It wasn’t fentanyl, it was all the other drugs she was on!” and “If it was fentanyl, it was because she was misusing it!” Two things jumped out at me about his report. First, he charges $750 an hour. Second, he spelled it “Cardiomegally” twice. There’s only one l in Cardiomegaly. You’d think that for $750 bucks an hour, he’d have taken five extra minutes to proofread it. Especially considering this glowing review of his textbook from Amazon:

“All healthcare practitioners and organizations need this book. … I love the organization and detail. Thorough does not do the detail justice. If every pathologist were as dedicated to a task as Dr. Karch has demonstrated in his preparation of the third edition, there would be fewer errors in the forensic aspects of the judicial system. … I congratulate Dr. Karch for the best work ever written on drug abuse.”

I hope I’m not coming across as overly snarky about a typo. I’m sure there are a few dozen I made on this website alone. I’m just really surprised that neither the doctor nor the fentanyl lawyers he’s working for caught the error. Or are the medical dictionaries I’m looking at wrong, and it really is spelled cardiomegally?

About this Blog

This blog chronicles legal and scientific news relating to personal injuries caused by defective drugs and medical devices. It is published by injury lawyer Justinian C. Lane, an attorney who takes a personal interest in each of his clients’ cases.